The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Generally, typical power control installations require selection of the discrete components, customized mounting and wiring for each component and feature, and numerous connections. One example of such a power control installation is a control system application for controlling the power provided to a power-receiving load where the power receiving load is a heater supplying heat to a temperature controlled manufacturing process. Any changes, additions, modifications, and replacements require disconnection and reconnection of various wire leads, yet again increasing the opportunity for problems. For example, the wire leads are often contained within wiring assemblies and terminated in wire connectors. These connectors often include a retaining clip or other retaining mechanism that are subject to premature failure when subjected to repeated connections and disconnections. The failure of the connector retention clips can result in the production system having to be halted and the failed components replaced by operating system maintenance personnel. Costly downtime and loss in process yields can result from such premature component failures. It is desirable to eliminate components that can succumb to premature failures.
The aforementioned problems and limitations of the existing power and thermal control systems and connectors are recognized by the inventors hereof and some or all of these limitations have been addressed by various embodiments of the current invention.